So long as the 'advertising' and push for us to buy the products and specific brands is not so "hitting the gamer over the head" in its presentation, like just seeing brand names of foods, and stuff is acceptable, but actually sticking in a "sales pitch" into the game is NOT acceptable. I think it is cool to see brand names I recognize and when I am in a game that has 'clues' or items from OTHER adventure games that I have played I think it is done to add humor and if you think about it, that could be considered an ad to sell more of the other games (but only if the items or pictures, whatever, are recognizable by the player as from another adventure game. Does any of this make sense? I feel like I am now rambling on ....... Anyway I don't think such a practice will bother me much. How about you other GBers?Love, Betty Lou

depends on what it looks like. i wouldn't mind, like, opening a fridge and seeing a case of Pepsi (TM) or something like that. in fact, I think it would be kind of amusing, and if it would garner funding for adventure games, well, more power to it. though i think developers should reserve the right to be able to comment--like clicking on the case of pepsi and hearing your character say, "Ah, the requisite product placement!" or something droll.

WW

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"So then he says it's enough to take aim! What's that supposed to mean?!?"

As I mentioned in the CSI review, Visa did this with CSI: 3 Dimensions of Murder. It was integrated smoothly into the game world. If doing this makes it more lucrative to make adventure games, I think it is great.

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"How could drops of water know themselves to be a river? Yet the river flows on."- Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

WW don't think they'd like it if my character asked wheres the coca cola though Seriously, not a problem as long as it is done tastefully, such as billboards outside towns, stuff you would expect to find

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A bounce a day keeps the doctor away!!Playing Sims2, Sherlock, Phantom of VeniceReading Storm Breaking

I get kind of annoyed at ad placement. I start thinking, "I wonder if the manufacturer paid them for that" and get pulled out of the gameworld. If it happens too much it really interferes with my enjoyment of the game.

I learned early on to not be seduced by drug... uh, pharmaceutical advertisements on TV that try to make you feel that YOU have the ailment du jour. That's more aggressive than I think we'll see in games.

Actually, it's kind of funny to see a real life brand name product placed in a game. Jerks me out of the fantasy of the game for a second & gives me a chuckle. Then I plunge right back in.

So long as the characters don't actually push products, I'm okay with it.. I had my immune 'vaccination' years ago (it's called "Mom").

I think it's fine if all it is is blended logos or ads where you'd expect to see them anyway and they are not in your face. Having game making more profitable means more and better games. What I fear though, is those producers who let the advertisers make the decisions. That could be catastrophic.

I would not like to see a bunch of ads that I have to view before the game starts. It really annoys me when they do that. Or if they put ads in between chapters, etc. That would really get me angry. I don't watch mainstream tv because I hate the ads. I certainly wouldn't want the interruptions in a game.

It's all a matter of how they do it.

Melanie

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"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." Mahatma Gandhi

Originally posted by Melanie1: ...I would not like to see a bunch of ads that I have to view before the game starts. ...Melanie

Geez, Melanie, I never thought of that. Having ads run before gameplay? Not good.

I thought what was meant was literally the placement of name brand products around the environment in an innocuous manner. A can of soda here... a billboard there. They'd be viewable, but not intrusive. Hopefully, that would be the extent of it. If not, I hope we get the option to hit the ESC key to bypass actual pre-game ads.